Most of the homes we see on our favorite TV shows require some suspension of disbelief and a lot of wish fulfillment. From the classic example of Monica and Rachel's apartment on Friends to the insane beach houses on Big Little Lies, these onscreen dwellings are much more of a fantasy for us than their characters' messy lives. But in case we want to think about these homes in real, concrete terms, a roofing supply company in London has just worked out the numbers for us.
The curious people at Burton Roofing mocked up floor plans of the homes in Friends, Stranger Things, and other popular TV shows. Then they looked at the market rate of similarly sized apartments and houses in real-life neighborhoods in which the shows take place (or their equivalent) and came up with how much it would cost someone to buy them. Why a roofing company decided on this PR stunt is a little beyond us, but we will happily enjoy the results of their efforts.
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Let's start off with what they discovered about that sprawling two-bedroom in the Village that Monica sublet from her grandmother. The neighborhood was great and barely affordable in the '90s when the show first aired, and it's even more upscale today. Even with occasional viewings of Ugly Naked Guy, you can expect a pad like this to go for $2.2 million, Burton determined. If only we all had wise and generous grandmothers!
Uptown to West 55th St., another sitcom two-bedroom would go for an even higher asking price. Ted and Marshall's apartment from How I Met Your Mother would sell at about $3.1 million, according to Burton's calculations. The second bathroom accounts for some of that cost, plus this neighborhood attracts more young professionals because it's close to more businesses and train lines. Honestly, we'd rather live in the Village.
Across the river, and in a different universe, Tony Soprano's four-bedroom, three-bath home (with a pool!) in North Caldwell, NJ, would set you back $1.1 million. That's a bargain compared to those New York apartments, but another TV criminal definitely got a better deal with his house in Albuquerque. Walter White's three-bedroom, three-bath house with a pool and screened-in porch from Breaking Bad would fetch about $275,000 today. Gotta keep that low profile, right?
Burton switched things up a little and priced out one home we wouldn't dare touch, no matter the bargain: the three bedroom house Joyce Byers shares with her sons on Stranger Things. Maybe the fact that it was surrounded by woods and located in the charming (fictional) small town of Hawkins was once appealing. But now we know what lurks out there, and underneath. Even if Joyce redecorated before putting it on the marked for an estimated $179,000, we're going to pass.
To end on a high note, Burton added its estimate for the Yorkshire estate we know as Downton Abbey. With 61 bedrooms and 6,000 acres of land, the Crawleys' ancestral home would be worth $173.9 million today. Does that price include a quippy dowager countess?